Wellbeing & Leadership Matters in Education Culture
Cultivating belonging and courageous leadership in education and beyond
Hyacinth G. Jones-Maes
healing centered
Turning discomfort into growth and connection
My work is grounded in healing-centred practices, recognising that conversations surrounding race, culture, wellbeing, and the decolonisation of education can evoke strong emotional responses. I facilitate safe and supportive environments where these feelings are acknowledged and addressed with care. This methodology mitigates the risk of retraumatisation while promoting resilience, empathy, and personal growth. I collaborate with universities, healthcare institutions, educational settings, families, and youth groups to transform challenging dialogues into opportunities for profound understanding, strengthened relationships, and sustainable change.
tailored experiences
Here are some of the most popular and highly sought-after types of services, tailored to meet your unique needs:
cultural sensitivity workshops for universities | racial awareness education for care sector in Belgium | emotional wellbeing for teachers & parents | emotional and social learning for young people | family constellations | decolonising classroom curriculum
belonging
I equip learning communities to gradually transform discomfort into courage, wellbeing, and lasting change in the education sector. Here’s how:
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Wellbeing & Leadership in Education: Training and coaching for educators and leaders to foster emotionally healthy, inclusive, and resilient learning environments.
Decolonising the Classroom: Workshops that reframe curriculum and pedagogy to embrace cultural sensitivity, diversity, and belonging.
Social & Emotional Learning for Students: Tailored sessions that build young people’s resilience, empathy, and self-awareness through healing-centred practices.
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Courageous Conversations: Facilitated dialogues on race, privilege, and systemic inequities, creating space for honest reflection and collective growth.
Diversity & Belonging Consultancy: Strategic support for building inclusive cultures within teams and organisations, with a focus on wellbeing and sustainability.
Capacity Building Workshops: Training staff and volunteers in emotional resilience, cross-cultural awareness, and leadership grounded in empathy.
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Family Constellations: Guided sessions to explore family dynamics, heal intergenerational patterns, and strengthen relationships.
Parent & Educator Wellbeing: Coaching for parents and caregivers to navigate stress, foster connection, and support children’s social-emotional development.
Life Coaching: One-to-one support to help individuals navigate personal challenges, embrace resilience, and align with their authentic values.
Summer Camp
In my work, I draw inspiration from the four elements—air, water, fire, and earth—blending science, creativity, and reflective practices.
In my week-long summer camps, I use theatre as a dynamic way to explore these elements, creating spaces where children and young adults feel a strong sense of belonging and connection. This approach not only nurtures emotional intelligence and social awareness, but also helps participants see themselves as valued contributors within a supportive and engaging community.
university service packages
Wellbeing and sustainable leadership matters in educational culture. Here’s how you can start making a difference whether your organisation is European, African, Asian, American or Arabian:
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Curriculum Review & Co-Design
Review syllabi to identify Eurocentric dominance.
Suggest readings, scholars, and methodologies from African, Indigenous, Asian, and diasporic perspectives.
Develop guidelines for inclusive pedagogy.
Ongoing Coaching & Support
1:1 or group coaching for academic leaders navigating institutional pushback.
Facilitate reflection spaces for students and faculty to sustain momentum.
Integrate life skills (e.g., empathy, resilience, dialogue) into their approach to curriculum reform.
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Training & Awareness
Workshops for faculty and staff on unconscious bias, racial literacy, and the colonial roots of knowledge.
Facilitated dialogues to help staff process discomfort and resistance.
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Raising awareness about the detrimental effects of omission in our school education systems and what to do about it.
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Develop personal empowerment tools, greater self-awareness and authentic leadership, emotional and spiritual intelligence skills.
close to my heart
“Where courage and compassion shape education.”
UNRAVELLING RACISM IN EUROPE
Non-native European educators and students in European educational institutes, often feel disconnected from a colonially-skewed-Euro-centric curriculum . The UN’s 2023 meeting (recording at the bottom of the link) concerning disaggregated data to advance the human rights of people of African descent reveals how this type of disconnection and alienation can impact the individual student or educator and the community in terms of overall wellbeing as well as leadership prospects. The European Commission’s 2024 (link to report in article) Factsheet on racism and discrimination against Black persons highlights that discrimination against people of African descent, in particular, is still prevalent across European institutions, which finds its roots in colonial ideology.
Decolonising the classroom
I have over 30 years of experience in racial healing across African, Caribbean, Asian and European communities. As a coach, teacher, and speaker, I conduct keynotes, workshops, and retreats.